A Place to Rot
by Sasha545
Summary: Sometimes silent love is the strongest type there is. Placed in captivity, Inoue Orihime is there to rot all alone. Ulquiorra on the other hand will soon discover that the more he looks the less he sees. Rewriten version.
1. Chapter 1 Introducing Inoue Orihime

_I'm rewriting this, basically because my English in not perfect and someone has been nice enough to beta for me. So from the bottom of my heart I want to thank__**Ztothe9**__, she has encouraged me to keep writing this, even though it's not even near close to the acceptance I've gotten from my fics in Spanish (my mother language). Anyway, if you are going to read it, I am very thankful ^^_

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**Genre**: Angst / Romance / Friendship  
**Main Characters - Parings**: Ulquihime / Ulquiorra Ciffer - Inoue Orihime  
**Author**: Sasha545  
**Rank**: M (_Explicit content, violence, cursing)_

**DISCLAIMER: BLEACH and the world of this amazing series belong to Tite Kubo. They are used in a non-commercial way.**

FICTION ISPIRED BY THE SONG CALLED "CAPTIVITY" BY THE DAYCARE SWINDLERS.

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**CHAPTER ONE**

**INTRODUCING INOUE ORIHIME**

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"… _It's Ulquiorra. Do not refer to me as you would a human. When you call me, call me Ulquiorra. Call me only that." _

The words repeated themselves in Orihime's head. Her expression reflected the sorrow she felt, not because she was locked in this dark and cold room, but because everything around her seemed that way. Everything was gloomy, distant and formal. They had treated her as a guest, making sure her every need was attended to, but she still didn't feel comfortable.

At least around her friends she was stress-free being her goofy self. They liked her for what she was, not for what she could be used for.

_I never meant to upset him, but I did anyway. I would be upset too if someone woke me up, he was sleeping after all… Or should I say 'it'? He doesn't want me to think of him as a person… _

Her eyelids darkened a bit in sadness. What she missed the most from the real world, inside her fancy cell, was talking and smiling. She would have given anything to have someone to talk to in this darkness, even if it was Ulquiorra or that awful Grimmjow. But, that was the way a captive was treated. Isolated from everything and everyone around her.

_No… I'm not captive. I chose. I am here by choice. _

"I'm coming in."

Nothing happened for a few seconds. He always did that, announcing himself like she could have been naked or something. At least he was polite.

But her eyes got really big thinking what he could want from her now. Her hands were shaking as she got herself together thinking how much she had wished for someone to talk to and now that there was indeed someone there, she just hoped he went away.

_Another test? Another humiliation? Is he supposed to take me to the bathroom? Food? Does Aizen need me? Are my friends alright? Are they attacking them again? _

But beside the sound of the door opening, no other word was spoken to her by Ulquiorra who now stood in the door frame indifferently. He was followed by the same hollow like being pushing a little food car with a silver tray on it. She wondered how they had those types of things in a place where nothing but sand and sorrow was harvested.

"Your dinner_._" Ulquiorra said, with his hands inside his pockets and not really looking at her. "Eat."

"Thank you, Ulquiorra-k…" _I almost said Ulquiorra-kun again… _She tried to address him in a formal tone the most she could. He had been polite despite the cruelty of his indifference. It could have been much worse, like for example, if Grimmjow had been appointed to take care of her.

She sat down at the sofa, looking at the tray. A plate of grapes, apples and strawberries was brought in together with what could have been milk. A light dinner was just what she needed, but she somehow wished that the milk would have been warm, it could have made her sleep easier.

She grabbed one single strawberry and gave it a bite while Ulquiorra made sure that she was actually eating.

"Is it of your liking, _onna_?" Ulquiorra asked, expressionless as always.

_Would you care if I said no? _

"Yes." Her voice seemed so sad but she smiled anyway bowing her head to him. "Thank Lord Aizen for me, please. I don't deserve his kindness."

"In that, we agree." Ulquiorra said as he left the room, walking towards the door. Inoue stared at him, he was always so calmed and soft, but also so pitiless. Suddenly, he turned around just under the door frame. His enormous green eyes made her shiver. _I'm naked in front of that glare… He knows everything… he can read my mind with a single look…__"_Who do you serve _onna_?"

"Lord Aizen." She answered it without even hesitating, wondering if she really believed that or she had said it because she felt it was true.

"Do not forget it." Ulquiorra glared at her with severity. "Your body and soul belong to Lord Aizen now." But his voice was paused and soothing. Not like he was giving her a command, but a price of advice. "It will be easier for you if you really believed in what you are saying, _onna_."

"I am Lord Aizen's humble servant. I won't forget it." Inoue looked down. It was hard keeping his stare after what had happened the day before.

Ulquiorra left without a second look at her. The other faceless hollow left the room too.

Once more, she was left all alone to rot in that place, just waiting. Time was killing her.

_Kurosaki-Kun… Sado-Kun… Ichida-Kun… Tatsuki-san… Kuchiki-san… Abarai-Kun … As long as you are safe, I don't mind being here._

She lowered her eyes to the plate of food. She didn't feel hungry at all.

"Kurosaki-Kun…" She felt her chest ache.

Soon, the delicious looking grapes were covered in tears.


	2. Chapter 2 Introducing the Cuarta Espada

**BETA: ZTOTHE9. Thank you so much ^^ **

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**CHAPTER 2**

**INTRODUCING THE CUARTA ESPADA**

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That kindness and sadness mixed together annoyed him. She seemed so thankful to all of them without even considering that they would take her life in a second if it was commanded.

_She should be full of anger, of hate. Not kindness. _

That would've been the normal human emotion to feel in a situation like the one she was living. Instead, she was smiling all the time, trying to create bonds with everyone around her. Like they could actually generate something similar to the connections humans had with one another.

_It's survival. She is trying to pretend she is comfortable simply so she can survive here. _

At least she had some instinct. In that aspect, every single living creature was alike. Even them.

He walked down the hall, step after step echoing through the empty space around him. Everything seemed silent and he was thankful for that. Yammy could've been appointed to take care of that woman with him, and that peaceful environment would've been torn to hell. He wouldn't say he enjoyed Yammy's company, but at least he wasn't irritated by his presence. That wasn't the case with other members of the Espada.

He understood the reason behind his appointment to take care of her. Of all the Espada, he was the only one who couldn't be bribed by emotional nonsense.

Harribel was a woman and she had that weird relationship with those three insignificant fracciones. It was obvious their "guest" might be capable of garnering some sympathy from her and then whole tension scenario that Lord Aizen had created would have been wasted.

Starrk was too lazy to even be asked. Ulquiorra didn't doubt he was the kind of being that would've given that woman better company. However, Lord Aizen had arranged for her to feel in distress not safe and sound. Starrk would've given her a sense of false security that she did not need.

And Barrigan…well, he just couldn't be trusted with a job like that. In fact, Ulquiorra thought he couldn't be trusted at all. Both Starrk and Harribel had a sort of "debt" with Lord Aizen; Barragan on the other hand, didn't. Ulquiorra knew the situation surrounding his enlistment with the Espadas and was sure that eventually the King of Hueco Mundo would try to get his crown back, one way or another.

So that left him; the one who brought her to Hueco Mundo in the first place. Sometimes he also thought Lord Aizen wanted him to learn more about that woman and her odd, yet interesting abilities. He had been the first to notice that her powers weren't about healing others; it was about rejecting time and space. That god-like ability was something he needed to observe better, and because of that, he didn't mind taking care of that woman.

Other times he thought caretaking for her was just a job that needed to be done.

Either way, spending time with someone so different from him was not a situation that he looked forward to at all, especially when she watched him with those big grey eyes trying to figure him out.

_Ulquiorra-kun. Hn. _

He was still annoyed about that. She had called him in that vulgar way, as if he was one of her useless friends. He wasn't there to spoil and cater to her. He was merely in charge of overseeing her imprisonment until Lord Aizen's plan was completed. Besides, if he hadn't been around taking care of her, she would already be dead.

It wasn't an assumption; it was a fact.

He had sensed Menoly and Loly around that woman's room. That couldn't lead anywhere good. If they hadn't done anything yet to try and harm her again, it was merely because he was always around. That had been the reason he had fallen asleep on the couch; he just couldn't abandon that woman to her fate. If he was near her, then trash like Menoly and Loly wouldn't be. He had thought about just killing them, but then again, when you kill an ant, five more appear to take vengeance. That was their nature when they felt threatened. And honestly, he wasn't looking for a reason to start a fight pitting him against every single arrancar in Lord Aizen's new army.

Before the woman's arrival at Las Noches, both Loly and Menoly had been turned into arrancars. He had watched as Lord Aizen used the Hougyoku to break their hollow masks.

"_.. What are your names my dear Arrancars?" _

"_Loly…"_

"_Menoly"_

"_You are very dear and important to me. You are essential for my purposes. From this day on, you will learn how to take care of a human being…"_

They thought Lord Aizen chose them to serve him because they were special. They thought they were his favorites because of how close they were to Gin, Tousen and Lord Aizen himself. But they had been wrong. Both of their faces had fallen in shame and humiliation the moment they heard all that training was for them to wait on Inoue Orihime, Aizen's new ally.

When Ulquiorra saw their behavior he immediately knew that Inoue Orihime would never be safe around them. Lord Aizen did too, otherwise he wouldn't have entrusted him with the task of personally taking care of her. Still, he never anticipated things to go so wrong, so fast.

It had happened just after that woman healed Grimmjow's arm. He escorted her to her new room followed by Menoly and Loly, giving them both instructions to feed and bathe the woman. He had left after that, not guessing (a mistake that distressed him often, his failure to have anticipated the outcome) that Inoue Orihime would refuse to eat. That was the last straw for Menoly and Loly.

**"**_The only job you two pieces of trash have is making sure that woman is alive when I return later to check on her. Fail at it, and Lord Aizen will have you turned to dust."_ He had said as he left the room with his usual indifference.

When he came back, he had seen Loly and Menoly spying through the door's key hole, trying to see what the woman was doing.

"Did she eat?" He asked, coming to stand behind them. He must have frightened them because they both jumped away from the peek hole.

"Yes." Answered Menoly. "We forced her to."

"Hmm…" Then he understood. **"**But you insured that she was fed?"

"Yes."

"_I must have fallen while sleeping…"_ Inoue Orihime had answered with a nervous smile, turning so Ulquiorra couldn't see her face. He had known she was lying. She was covered in blankets, just waking up, and she had tried to shield her body from him so Menoly and Loly wouldn't get in trouble.

_Strange woman… _

_"__Don't worry, please. It's nothing. I must be more careful next time. I'm not used to this big bed and I must have rolled over and fell… " _

He couldn't care less about the injuries. He would have done the same in Menoly's and Loly's position. Their task was to feed her, not beg her to eat. Still, that woman was Lord Aizen's, and without explicit instructions to beat her, no one could touch her. That had been made very clear to all of them.

As soon as he had closed the door leaving Inoue Orihime behind him with her bruises and sorrow, he had dismissed Menoly and Loly for good, making their existence in Hueco Mundo pointless. They were forbidden to ever enter that room again. Now the door never opened unless he was the one entering. No one was allowed to see her, not even the other Espada. Inoue Orihime never knew that Ulquiorra was there so often for her safety (not that he cared or even liked being there), commanded by Lord Aizen to take care of her.

Still, it was hard for Ulquiorra to figure out how the mind and body of a human worked. He didn't need to eat, or sleep, or bathe. He didn't age. He didn't feel as humans did. He didn't believe in anything that wasn't reflected in his eyes. He used his time walking, waiting…years had come and gone without anything interesting occuring except surviving Hueco Mundo and its constant struggle for supremacy.

But the woman needed to eat and sleep; needed to bathe and use the bathroom. She had the need for water (which was rare in Hueco Mundo, almost impossible to get). And there was also that part he didn't care about… her sorrow. She was good at hiding it, but she couldn't hide the tears that ran down her cheeks in the middle of the night. Ulquiorra couldn't feel nor understand sadness, but his eyes could reflect tears. He could see them even if, for him, tears had no meaning. Sadness was the only human feeling he could clearly see without mistaking it.

His thoughts came to a sudden end as he reached the big white doors he was looking for. Lord Aizen's chambers were right behind them. After every three meals, Ulquiorra would go to him and report on Inoue Orihime's condition. He had given five reports so far.

"Ulquiorra, please enter." He said with his usual polite tone. He was sitting on a throne in the highest spot of the room.

"Aizen-sama."He said bowing. "She has again completed her three feedings, once every eight hours. Since the third meal has been consumed, she will now sleep for the next eight hours before eating again."

"I feel you are excluding something. Are you?**" **He asked while bringing a cup of tea to his lips and sipping slowly.

"She also wanted me to thank you for your kindness."

"Is that so? I see." He stood up. "So everything is going the way I thought it would."

"It is, sir."


	3. Chapter 3 Call me Ulquiorra

I have no words to express how thankful I am to** Ztothe9**, she is a wonderful person who always cheers me up, even though we don't know each other. Thanks for beta'ing for me honey bunny!

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**CHAPTER 3**

**CALL ME ULQUIORRA**

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He was leading the way as he always did, only this time it was just the two of them. She followed, obedient as usual, with her head lowered, her eyes staring at her own shoes. On previous occasions when he had taken her from her room, other Arrancar would follow them, eager for a glance at the imprisoned human. But this time was different; there was no one else there with them.

He walked silently as they traveled down the corridor then turned onto another. Orihime trailed behind him without complaint, her eyes now fixed on the way the white tails of his jacket moved, looking as if they were the lower part of a pair of white wings on his back. The soft sway of the fabric seemed to mesmerize her for a while.

He was so graceful and refined in the way he moved, causing her to speculate about the differences between him and the vulgar Grimmjow or the slow Yammy. Ulquiorra was so unlike those two; he never cursed and it was obvious to Orihime just how intelligent he was.

_They are all so different, each one of them. Despite their hollow origin, they have their own will and personality, just as humans do._

She tore her eyes from him and noticed they were walking down halls she had never seen before in her time at the enormous castle of Las Noches, the home of the Espada and their Fracciones. She fell behind, distracted, before racing to catch up; but Ulquiorra never slowed or stopped to see if she was still following or not.

The white halls were completely empty. There was nothing there, just the endless white. The only sound to be heard was the echo of their footsteps as they walked on, down hallway after hallway.

Suddenly a stairway appeared and Ulquiorra led them down it, again never slowing or pausing. The light dimmed and the air grew colder. Soon she found herself trembling beneath her thin school sweater. Inoue couldn't help but chide herself for going to Hueco Mundo with nothing but her school uniform.

A few torches burned faintly along the walls, but it wasn't the same as when the moon illuminated the halls. She hugged herself tightly trying to gain some warmth, but her body continued to shiver.

_Can't he feel how cold it is in this hallway? Where are we? Where is he taking me?_

"Where are we going?" She finally asked, her fear starting to grow. _They are moving me to some dungeon, a dark and damp jail with no windows, just bars and mold… _She thought. It was the first words spoken since they had left the room, when he had simply ordered her to follow. "It's so very cold here."

"I'm taking you to the bathing chamber." Ulquiorra answered without stopping or giving her any more explanation than that.

_Do I smell? Oh… this is so embarrassing! I haven't had a bath in days… I hadn't even thought about it…_

"Bath?"

"Yes. Everything is settled for you to bathe, as you normally would."

"I thought there was no water in Hueco Mundo."

She was completely ignorant in the matter of what there was and wasn't to be found in Hueco Mundo. She had yet to see any natural water in the few places she had been. The only thing that met the eye was sand…sand… and more sand. Occasionally she spotted small hollow animals that would wiggle out from underneath the sand, but besides those and the odd bone-like trees…there was nothing to be found.

"There isn't." He answered shortly as he turned left and opened a door that lead to yet another long and dreary hallway.

"Then…_how_…?" She asked in surprise, a sudden image of a little Ulquiorra figure carrying buckets of water through the desert popping into her mind. Then, the image turned into a little Ulquiorra digging in the sand looking for water. She caught herself before she broke out into laughter which surely would not have gone over well with Ulquiorra.

"We have our ways." He answered interrupting her thoughts. "Opening a _Garganta _and bringing water from the World of the Living is one of them."

"Uhm…" The figure of the little Ulquiorra in her mind was now carrying thousands of bottles of water on his back as he struggled under the weight. "That sounds like an awful lot of work and trouble just for me to take a b…"

"Don't flatter yourself, _onna_." He interrupted, stopping and glaring at her coldly over his shoulder. He looked offended, like she had said something wrong. "I am not taking you to bathe because I care about your hygiene. Lord Aizen commanded me to do so."

"I… I didn't mean you…" She always grew nervous, so nervous when those big green eyes were staring her down. "…I didn't mean you care enough for me to go through all that trouble, Ulquiorra-ku…" _Oh No… _she thought immediately. "kun…"

"I thought we had already discussed the proper way for you to address me."

He turned around completely, walking back in her direction. Orihime froze not even daring to breathe. She was terrified of him when he looked at her that way. She knew that in a mere second, his hand could be wrapped around her neck. But instead he just stopped in front of her as the silence loomed between them. He didn't blink as he stared straight into her eyes. She didn't either as her heart started to pound.

Silence.

Not a single word was uttered as they both stood there, so close and yet so far away, their eyes the only tether between them.

There was such stillness between them that Inoue could hear the frantic beating of her own heart and the hiss of the flames as they consumed the torches.

"Call me Ulquiorra." He finally spoke, his voice quiet in the echoing hallway. "Call me only that."

"I'm…sorry." She looked away. She couldn't stand the way he was looking at her.

"I am not a human." – He continued, seeming thoroughly annoyed with her. It always seemed to hit a nerve when she confused things between them. It was even perceptible in his voice, in the slight deviation from his usual monotone, that comparing him to a human being was an insult. "I am not here to befriend you. I do not seek to make you feel cared for. I cannot understand nor want to understand most of the things you do and say."

"I…"

"You annoy me. You are just an instrument to be used when the moment arrives. Nothing more, nothing less."

"Please…stop…" she whispered as she squeezed her eyes shut trying to block out his piercing gaze. But Ulquiorra wasn't even close to finished with her.

"And when that moment arrives and you become useless to us…" He took one step closer. "Trust me onna, I do not care if you live or die."

_Useless. I've always been useless. Here. With my friends. I have never been able to stand up for myself and fight. I have always depended on others to do the fighting for me. Kurosaki-kun has been injured so many times trying to protect me… and still… even here, away from him, away from everyone… I can't be anything more than useless! I thought I could get stronger in Soul Society with Kuchiki-san's help, and still… I was completely helpless when he came for me. The best I could do for the ones I love was disappearing. I wish I had your strength… Kuchiki-san…_

"That's fine. If Lord Aizen wants to get rid of me once he understands my powers, I will be accept it. I know I am not strong enough to be useful to him in any other way." She said, breathing deeply, trying to prevent her tears from falling from her closed eyes. Then, to Ulquiorra's surprise… she smiled. "I will stop calling you that." Her cheeks flushed and her hands clenched together as she fought for the courage to say what came next. Her eyes opened and they were filled with fire_**. **I refuse to be useless anymore. I'll fight, just as Kuchiki-san told me to. _ "As long as you start calling me by my name."

Ulquiorra's eyebrows shot up a fraction, the only indication that he was shocked by her response. He never would have expected her to defy him. She said it so softly but the force behind her words was unmistakable.

"It's Orihime, Orihime Inoue. Not Onna. Not woman." She laughed, nervous. "My friends call me Orihime-san, Inoue-san or plain Inoue. I'm not saying we are friends… but, I'd appreciate you'd call me by my name. It's Orihime."

Ulquiorra didn't answer. He stood there quiet, with his empty glare. Whenever he stared at her so intently, she felt naked, like he could see right through her and there was no place to hide. She had stood up for herself, and now, it was probable that she would have to endure another lecture about how she had no rights nor could ask or expect anything from him. But he didn't say a word.

"_Pff…"_ He suddenly turned around, jammed his hands inside his pockets and continued walking.

The rest of the trip to the bathroom was in complete silence. Inoue's heart was beating faster and faster with every step they made in the dreary silent hall. Until he stopped, right outside a wooden door. White of course.

"Go in."

She did as he instructed and entered a white room with a single bathtub and a small chair next to it. On the chair were the typical bath materials any person would use. She could see steam rising from the water inside the tub.

"There's hot water, soap and shampoo for your use." He said, without looking at her. She knew he was still aggravated. "You will also find towels for you to dry yourself when you are done. There's a comb for your hair and other female products, if you need them." Then, their eyes met again as he glanced toward her. "Do you require anything else?"

"No, no! That's more than enough." She answered smiling. She was feeling a little uncomfortable with the situation as she realized he might expect her to undress and get in the water with him standing right there. "… that's more than enough."

"Fine." He said turning and walking to the door. "I'll call for Loly and Menoly to assist you." Inoue's eyes grew large with fear and without thinking what she was about to ask, she found herself begging

"Please don't."

Ulquiorra stood still, not turning around. Some seconds passed in complete silence while the hazy steam drifted around his figure.

"I can not afford to have you drown."

"I not going to drown in a bathtub!" Was he really insinuating what she thought he was? Did they think she was so weak and vulnerable that she would kill herself there? "I…"

"I cannot run the risk of you attempting to harm yourself. You are my responsibility as long as Aizen-sama commands it." He turned back towards her and she was once again caught in his stare.

"Please." The mere idea of those two seeing her naked, hitting her, teasing her while she cleaned herself, made her tremble and her voice rose as she began to panic. "Please. I give you my word."

"Your word?" He asked and thought about it for a second. "Can I see your words? Can I touch them? Can words bring you back to life if you die?"

"No." She looked down; she really didn't have anything to propose in exchange for that favor. "But words are the only thing I have to offer right now."

Silence descended again as his eyes watched her. They were so deep and vivid; she could even see herself reflected in them. His eyes became hooded as he stared, while she mentally begged him to allow her to bathe alone.

"Do as you please then." He said finally before moving to the doorway. "I'll be waiting outside for you to finish. I will leave the door open, but no one will come in."

"Thank you, Ulquiorra." Orihime smiled, her cheeks blushing in happiness. It felt like her first victory in Hueco Mundo. For once, she was trusted to do something on her own. "I won't take long."

"Take the time you need. Never rush into anything." His words startled her as did the soft tone he used. Just as he was leaving, he paused, as if debating whether he was sure about leaving her alone. "Orihime Inoue." It was just his eyes moving towards her, the rest of his body was still.

"Yes?" She asked with shyness.

"I'll personally kill every single one of your friends if you do choose to harm yourself in any way. Remember that while you bathe."

She sighed as Ulquiorra left her alone. She peered over the edge of the tub and gazed at her reflection in the hot water. Then she quickly shed her clothes, dropping them in a pile on the floor before climbing into the soothing heat.


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